July 16, 2008

Washington, DC – Nevada Senator Harry Reid made the following statement today after the U.S. Senate passed the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008:

“I am pleased that we were able to pass the global HIV/AIDS bill with a strong bipartisan vote.  I commend Senators Biden and Lugar for their hard work on this legislation and their commitment to moving this bill forward.  Despite the fact that this legislation is President Bush’s own initiative, we saw once again that Senate Republicans will slow down the Senate even on legislation which they ultimately support.  We were able to overcome the objections of a very small group of Republican Senators who had tried to block this legislation and were able to pass a bill that will help save tens of millions of lives in Africa and around the world.”

###